On Wings Of Angels
by lilmissFaith
Summary: It's Thief Lord...remixed... All of it belongs to Cornelia Funke....except Mara, she's mine
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Scipio was returning from one of his raids when he ran into her. She was slim and pretty, but her hair was frazzled as though she had been in a fight, and she sported a spectacular black eye. 'Have you lost your parents?' he asked in the habitual way he had formed through all his other subjects, 'I'll help you find them.'

'I have not lost my parents; I'm not two.' the girl snapped, 'and if I had, I could find them myself.'

'If you're not lost, why is a pretty girl like you out on a cold night like this?'

'Enjoying the sights. And don't call me pretty.' the girl narrowed her eyes.

'Too late.' Scipio teased, 'You shouldn't be out here in the dark.'

'I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself.'

'I don't think you could.' He really didn't think she could.

'Well let's find out, shall we? I'll go my way, you go yours, and if you never hear from me again, I'm fine.'

'I won't hear from you if you're dead, either.' Scipio rolled his eyes. This girl was proving difficult.

'That's the point.' she tried not to yell at him. It wasn't his fault he'd caught her in a bad mood.

'Come on, I'll help you find your hotel.'

'What hotel? I thought we'd been through this. I...do...not...need...help. Now go away, before I call the cops on you.'

'Very well. Good night.' Scipio turned to leave and didn't look back. ' I hope you don't get eaten by rats.'

The next afternoon, Mara Greene spotted the boy she had met the night before, marching through St. Mark's Square like he owned the place. He was leading a band of ragamuffin adolescents like kids in America would play Follow The Leader. Mara tailed them, and found out that they were going to the Basilica. The boy left three kids outside, presumably to keep watch, but Mara snuck into the church through a side door. She peeked from around a pillar, and nearly got caught by one of the boy's companions. 'I don't like churches. It feels like we're being watched.' he said uncomfortably. You have no idea, thought Mara. 'Come on, he's waiting.' said Mara's acquaintance, who apparently liked to masquerade as a bird, judging by the mask he wore to conceal his features, 'We have enough time later to be scared.' He was obviously something of an older brother to the kids, but why did he bother? He has nothing to gain; these are obviously street rats. _What a wonderful word. Obviously. It has a ring to it, don't you think? _Mara slapped herself. _Would you stop talking yourself and start listening?_ The boys had entered the confessional; it looked a rather tight fit. Mara joined a group devoutly praying the rosary. As she kneeled, she heard muffled voices. 'Five million,' came a young voice, 'Sounds like a fair price.' Mara recognized the speaker as the leader of the little group. An old voice said, 'what you are supposed to steal is of value only to me, since it is made of neither gold nor silver, but of wood. Do we have a deal, Thief Lord?'. Then the old voice said very clearly, 'Go get your friend, I would like to keep my secrets and I don't have a mask to aid me.' Mara glanced at her fellow pray-ers. They'd left. There was a moment of confusion in the confessional, and the boy with the bird mask stepped out. Mara quickly went back to praying. 'Psst! C'mere!' Mara turned toward him with a look of innocent shock and annoyance on her face. 'You again!! Can't you just leave me alone?'

'No. Come with me.' the boy looked anxious even through his mask.

'Oh, yes, because I go with every strange guy who wants me to go with him, because I'm an idiot,' Mara spat venomously

'Have it your way.' He picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder. Mara could've killed him on the spot, but she didn't. She was in a church, after all. 'Put me down!!' she yelled anyway. He did. 'Can you try to behave? There's a lot of money riding on you, and I'd like to be fairly rich for a bit.'

'Really? I figured the almighty Thief Lord would be living high.' Mara scowled. 'I'll behave if nobody talks to me.'

An impatient voice sounded loudly. 'Hurry up, before I change my mind.'

'Come on.' the boy said through the stupid mask. 'We don't have time to chat.'

Mara rolled her eyes and stepped reluctantly into the confessional. 'Count to sixty, then you can leave.' the Thief Lord whispered in her ear. Mara had just reached thirty-seven when one of the boys said, 'Fifty-nine, sixty.'

The boy with the mask grinned. 'You certainly count fast, Mosca,' he said mockingly.

'I just want to get out of here. I don't like churches.'

'They give you the creeps, I know. Can we go now? I'd like to leave before I'm old.'

The posse waited for a pack of tourists to wander past, then left the cramped space. The Thief Lord entered the door meant only for priests, and emerged with a basket and an envelope. The basket rustled. 'Don't open it. It might be a snake!' the one called Mosca fretted. 'Don't be silly. Why would the Conte give us a snake?' the masked lad snorted, then thought about it. 'Still.... you open it.' he said, shoving the basket at Mara.

'Awww, is the Thief Lord scared of a itty bitty snaky?' She lifted the lid of the basket slowly, drawing it out. She screamed for effect, making everyone jump back three feet. 'It's...it's..' she stuttered, '...a bird.' She pulled the pigeon out with a flourish. Mosca let out a breath he'd been holding. 'Well, that's a relief, I must say.'

The Thief Lord raised his eyebrows-quite a feat, considering he was still wearing his mask- 'No kidding.' he agreed.

The third and final boy, who had remained silent up to now, began poking the bird-faced boy furiously.

'What?' the Thief Lord nearly yelled.

Frantically jabbing a finger toward the center of the Basilica the boy hissed, 'Tourist! Tourist!'

'Are you worried about your brother, Prop? He's fine with Hornet, and you know it.' the Thief Lord said without turning around.

Mara studied the bird a bit before holding it directly in the masked boy's face. 'Does this bird remind you of someone you know.... _Thief Lord_!'

The boy ripped off his mask, exposing his pale, freckled face. 'I am not a bird. Clear?' Mara grinned devilishly and pinched the Thief Lord's cheeks. 'Aren't you just the cutest widdle fing?' she crooned in a sickeningly high voice. He turned bright red and stomped away. Just before he got out of earshot, Mara called. 'Thief Lord!' He turned around. 'Don't you want your birdie?'

_Do I want my birdie? I'll show you birdie!_ The Thief Lord's thoughts were murderous. 'Mosca, get the bird.' he said through clenched teeth. Mosca shuddered. 'What if it bites me? What if it's carrying some terrible disease? What if-'

Scipio cut him off. 'What if the sky grows a tree and your ear turns blue? Get the bird.' he said with scorn in his voice.

'Let's not get ridiculous, now...' Mosca said quietly.

'And the bird is in a basket. Get it.' Scipio snapped. 'Why are you arguing with me?'

Sullenly, Mosca trudged over to Mara. 'He's not always like this, you know. He's normally very nice. It's your fault,' he murmured as he gingerly took the basket as though it would explode at any second.

Scipio glanced back at the girl as he exited the church. She wasn't as tough as she seemed, he was sure of it. When they got outside, he instructed his followers not to go directly back to the hideout. That girl might not be tough, but she was sneaky enough to follow them.

'Hey, Scip! I fed the birds with Victor.' Bo was so sweet and innocent. Scipio couldn't be mad with Bo around.

'I caught him at the end of his little conversation. He was talking to the snoop.' Riccio said, ignoring Prosper's icy glare.

'Who?' Prosper glanced uneasily into the crowd, ' How many times do I have to tell you not to talk to strangers, Bo? Do you want to go back to Esther?' Scipio cut him off sharply. 'Calm down, Prop. If it really was the snoop, we'll simply give him the slip. Honestly, you're starting to sound like Mosca, the way you worry about things. Come on.' He led the way down a back alley. At the end of the line, Mosca said nervously to Riccio, 'I don't worry that much, do I? I mean, I'm careful, but I don't really worry, right?' Riccio pretended not to hear. Scipio explained the plan in one of the many shops selling cheap mementos to tourists. 'Prop, give your jacket to Riccio. It's not that hard to change how you look,' he continued as he removed his mask, ' I'll leave first and distract Victor while the rest of you sneak out. Hornet, you know where the ferry stops?' When Hornet had assured him that she did, of course, know where the ferry docked, Scipio said to the brothers, 'Mosca will lead you two back to the hideout after Riccio leads the snoop towards where Hornet will be. Everyone will meet at the Stella as soon as possible. Understood?' Everybody nodded except Bo, who looked slightly confused. 'Good. Let's go.'


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Scipio spotted the detective lurking in one of the labyrinths Venice called its alleys. He had given his mask to Prosper. He felt so vulnerable without it. He approached the snoop with natural cautiousness. _'Scusi_, do you have the time?' He asked. Four sixteen was the answer. Scipio nodded. 'Thank you. That's a nice watch. Does it also show the time on the moon?' he gave the snoop his special smirk, 'Are you English?'

'No, I'm an Eskimo, can't you tell?' The older man sneered sarcastically. Scipio smiled

'That's interesting. They don't stray into this city very often.' Scipio pointed discreetly to his chin.

The snoop's fake beard was peeling off, but he fixed it quickly. Scipio sauntered off, casting a glance in the direction of Riccio, who was leading the detective away.

I feel I have to tell this next part from Victor Getz' point of view, because his view is most hilarious.

After the gangly youth had strolled away, Victor spotted Prosper. Heavens! Was the boy really that short? He couldn't see the older brother in the shop anymore, but the younger one was still there. Victor decided to follow the big brother. Prosper wouldn't leave his brother for long, Victor was sure. He could lead Victor to the gang's hideout, if Victor wasn't recognized. Prosper was walking briskly now, and bumped into a young girl. The same girl, Victor realized, that had been so engrossed in her book earlier, when he had been chatting with Bo. He was nearly running to keep up with Prosper, but the girl stepped out in front of him, causing him to stop short. The girl looked at him with hostile gray eyes, and threw herself against him, thrashing about and screaming at the top of her lungs. 'No! I don't want to come with you! Let me go!' Then Victor felt something hit him in the stomach full speed, knocking both Victor and his assailant into the cold, unforgiving waters of the polluted canal.

Mara was taking a walk along the canal when she heard screams. She rushed to the site and did the first thing that came to mind. She shoved the girl, whom she realized was one of the Thief Lord's pets, and tackled the attacker from a full sprint. Mara hit her head on something hard, and was knocked out. With a splash, she came back to consciousness, and had to swim for her life as a motorboat sped by. Her companion was shouting. Time to submerge. Mara sucked in a deep breath and swam underwater to the nearest bridge. When she looked back on the destruction she had caused, Mara was pleased to see that the girl had gotten away. She reached for the edge of the canal, and a hand was lowered to help her up. She looked at her rescuer's face. Birdface. Mara didn't want to admit it, but without his mask, Scipio was actually very handsome, with his long dark hair, and his almost-black eyes. His tight ponytail was falling out, like he had been running. Mara highly doubted he recognized her, seeing as she guessed she looked something like a drowning cat, but she took his hand anyway. It was warm and soft. The hand of a pianist, Mara thought as she took in Scipio's slender fingers.

'You should come with me. You knocked your head rather badly.' Even his voice was handsome, in its own way.

And for once in her life, Mara didn't argue. After all, her sensible side insisted, it's not like you don't know him. This being the third time you've met, you can't exactly call him a stranger anymore. 'Righty-ho, Scip, I'll just follow you, then, shall I?' She was acting stupid, and Mara knew that she was a little muddled from her fall.

Scipio gave her a second glance, and saw precisely whom he had helped out of the canal.

'You again? I thought I'd seen the last of you back in the Basilica!' He was dumbfounded. If she was in the canal, that means she was the one who knocked the snoop in, too. He looked at her again. She was trying not to shiver, he could tell. 'Come on, I'll get you dried off. I suppose I owe you one for helping, however inadvertently, with my master plan. I'm going to have to blindfold you, though.'

'Your master plan? Aren't you the diplomatic one.' Mara managed to be demeaning even through chattering teeth. She rolled her eyes. 'I'll go quietly if you tell me where we're going.'

Scipio chuckled. 'That kind of defeats the purpose of blindfolding you. Very well. I'll tell you where we're going if you tell me your name.'

With a shock, Mara realized she hadn't left him with a clue to her name. 'Er, it's Earlina Hunkhouser,' she stammered. Scipio just stared at her with his eyebrow raised. Mara could tell he didn't believe her. She rolled her eyes again. 'Fine. It's Mara.'

'Good enough. We're going to my Star-Palace.' Scipio smirked. He obviously thought he was being witty.

Scipio led the way, lending Mara his midnight-black coat so she wouldn't catch cold. Abruptly he turned, almost causing Mara to bump into him. 'On second thought, I'm going to leave you here.' This was probably the most confusing moment of Mara's day. While she mulled it over, Scipio tried to sneak away. Mara caught him and hissed in his ear, ' I certainly hope I don't tell your little secret.' It had the desired effect. Scipio narrowed his eyes. 'What do you know about that?'

'Oh, I don't know,' Mara said in lighthearted tones. 'Maybe nothing, maybe everything. Maybe I know that you are planning to steal something--' Scipio clamped his hand over her mouth, ' Are you insane? You can't say a word of that here. We're in the middle of a crowd!' Mara pried back the fingers on the hand restraining her and retorted quickly, 'People don't care unless you draw attention to it. Which, might I add, is exactly what you're doing.' she shrugged off Scipio's arms, which were wrapped around her waist as though to keep her from running away, and sauntered off, calling to Scipio, 'Good-bye, Thief Lord. Good luck with your job.'


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Mara huddled under the trench coat, pulling it tightly around her body. 'Why did I have to push that guy into the canal? Now I'm freezing, and the Thief Lord's holed up in his Star Palace. He's probably got a heater and everything.' she said to no one in particular. She fished around in her jeans for her pocketknife to slice some bread she had conned that afternoon. Something caught her attention. She heard footsteps. Mara held her knife at the ready. The intruder was running, and it sounded like he was crying, too. A fairly young intruder, then. No older than fifteen, Mara guessed. And then there was a muffled thump, and the footsteps stopped. Mara peered around the corner, and whom should she see but Scipio. He had tripped; it looked like, and was sobbing hysterically. Mara felt a pang of regret for her attitude earlier. She knew what it was like to have problems. On a whim, she quietly snuck up on the Thief Lord. Before she knew what she was doing, Mara took Scipio in her arms and stroked his hair, over and over, until the Thief Lord had calmed down.

'I hate this,' Scipio sniffled, 'I hate lying to everybody.'

'So don't lie to everybody.' Mara suggested.

Scipio snorted. 'I have to lie to them. They'll hate me if I don't.'

'But if they catch you lying, won't they be more mad than if you had just told them? And who are we talking about here?'

'I have to lie to them. It's for their own good.' Scipio looked like he was going to cry again.

Mara sighed. 'But you don't have to lie to everybody, do you? You could tell me. By the way, I have something of yours.'

She brought the greatcoat to Scipio, who looked at it and burst into tears. Mara rolled her eyes. _Have patience, Mara, _she thought to herself. She took Scipio in her arms again and started rocking him back and forth. 'It's okay, it's okay,' Mara said, 'Just please stop crying. Every cloud has a silver lining, right?'

Scipio sniffled again. He angrily brushed the tears from his eyes and jerked himself out of Mara's arms. He snatched up the coat and stalked away without so much as a backward glance. Mara got up and ran after him.

'Hey!' she yelled, 'don't thank me or anything. I guess the Thief Lord is just too high in the social tree to speak to mere mortals like me.'

Scipio stopped and turned slowly. 'Thank you,' he said so quietly that Mara had to read his lips.

'You're very welcome. Now, let me show you my humble abode.' Mara gestured toward her shelter.

As Mara led him through the dilapidated shack she lived in, Scipio reflected on what she had said. Every cloud has a silver lining. All you had to do was look for it. If his father hadn't been in a foul mood, he wouldn't have seen Mara again, that's something good, right? To get his coat back, Scipio reminded himself; Mara was a royal pain in the neck. Mara stopped abruptly and Scipio ran into her. 'Sorry,' he mumbled.

'Quite all right. Now, shouldn't you be getting home? It's kind of really dark out.'

Scipio's eyes widened. 'N-no, I'm alright. My father won't mind.' He bit his lip as he realized what he had just said. 'Er, I mean, that is, um-'

'You snuck out, didn't you? I won't tell.'

Scipio let out the breath he'd been holding. 'Er, yeah, that's it. I don't think it's late enough to sneak back yet,' he lied.

'If you're sure. Want to go for a walk?' Mara asked. Scipio nodded. Anything to stay out of the house a little longer. He led Mara around the ferry stop and through a few back alleys to a little chocolate shop. Mara just stood there and breathed in, the sweet atmosphere perfumed by cocoa and vanilla. Scipio told her to wait and entered the shop. When he came out, he was carrying a little box of assorted chocolates. Then he led her to a long-abandoned bridge overlooking the lagoon. While they ate the sweets, he told her about his favorite parts of Venice: the small, almost forgotten places that nobody but him and the owners knew about. Finally, Scipio decided that his father was asleep enough for him to sneak back in. He left Mara at he Accademia Bridge and sauntered into the night. Mara considered following him, but decided that it was too late for that kind of shenanigan. She returned to her shack and drifted off to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The next day Mara strolled down by the kiosk and paused to look at the beautiful sunrise. She vaguely felt something digging around in her pocket. She turned to find a young boy no older than ten.

'Hey kid, I am a pickpocket, I think I'd know when I was being pock picketed--er, I mean pick pocketed. Anyway, drop it before I'm forced to hurt you.' Mara glared menacingly at the boy, not blinking. The boy flashed her a quick smile before dashing madly for the labyrinth of alleys where (supposedly) he could lose Mara. Unfortunately for him, Mara knew the city like the back of her hand. Mara anticipated his next turn, and beat him to it. Just as the boy skidded around a corner, Mara ran into him from the other direction. They tangled for a moment, and Mara took advantage of the confusion to get the boy in a headlock. She wrestled him into the alley he had just run through. She pushed him up against a wall and put her hand over his mouth. 'Shut up!! Do you want the cops to catch me??' The boy nodded his head. 'How about you?' Mara raised her eyebrows, 'Yes I thought not.' she said as the boy shook his head.

'Now, you are going to tell me what I want to know. Not what I want to hear, mind you. All right?' The boy nodded again. 'Good. Now, first question; what made you think I had anything of value on me?' Mara removed her hand from the boy's face so he could answer. He started shouting in Italian. From Mara's meager Italian vocabulary, the gist of it was 'Help, I'm being kidnapped!' She clapped her hand to the boy's mouth again, and whispered nastily, 'you rotten little liar!' Then she carried him under her arm farther down the alley, where she then sat on him. 'I see we're going to have to do this the hard way,' Mara said exasperatedly. 'I ask questions, you answer--_truthfully_. Understand?' The boy nodded. 'Can I trust you not to yell if I take my hand off your mouth?' Mara asked. The boy nodded again. Mara gingerly moved her hand aside again, and the boy remained silent. She rolled her eyes. Mara wasn't particularly fond of the silent treatment.

'Right then. First question, what is your name?'

'R-r-Riccio.' The boy stuttered.

'And what made you decide to pick my pocket?'

'Please don't call the carabiniere on me.' Riccio pleaded, 'I was just hoping to earn some breakfast.'

'Hmm. Very well, I won't report you on one condition. You take me to your hideout with you, and there's not another word about this little...incident. Agreed?' Mara raised her eyebrow patronizingly.

'How do I know you're not going to trick me?' Riccio asked, suspicious.

'You'll just have to trust me.' Mara said, 'But how about I buy breakfast?'

Scipio returned to the hideout to find Mara (who else??) nibbling at a scone with Bo in her lap while Hornet and Prosper asked her all sorts of questions. Riccio was.... typical, the boy was scarfing down an enormous éclair. Mosca must still be sleeping; he wasn't a morning person.

'Well, well, well. What have we here?' Scipio boomed in a deep, what he hoped was intimidating, voice.

'Scip! This is Mara. She brought all sorts of cakes and things!' Bo said enthusiastically, running over to Scipio.

'Oh she did, did she?' said Scipio, swinging the oncoming Bo over his shoulder, wrestling style.

'Yep, and I ate a whole éclair! Isn't that great? Soon I'll be bigger than you, Scip.' Bo was laughing.

'I should hope not. I'd simply have to pound you down again.' Scipio gave a chuckle. Mara realized it was the first time she had heard him laugh.

'Well, well, well, the Thief Lord does have a sense of humor,' Mara said with a laugh, 'albeit a weird one. Have an éclair, I do believe I bought too many.'

'I'll eat them for you, Mara,' said Bo enthusiastically.

'You'll get a stomachache if you do.' warned Prosper.

'No I won't!' Bo insisted.

'Yes, you will.'

'No, I won't!'

'Yes, you will!'

'Won't!'

'Will!'

'Won't!'

'Will!'...


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

While this exchange was going on, Scipio motioned for Mara to follow him. He led her up a flight of stairs, to the rooftop of the theater.

'What are you doing here?' he asked sharply, 'Why don't you just go back where you came from?'

Mara squinted at him and replied, 'I am here for reasons beyond your perception, and if I went back where I came from, I'd probably die from madness.'

'What reasons?' Scipio interrogated, 'Why from madness? Why not old age?'

'Like I said,' Mara grimaced at the cold winds, 'they are beyond your perception. From madness because I always knew I would never die of old age.'

'You aren't making sense!' the Thief Lord howled, 'How can you just waltz in here and take over everything I've built? You've already got Bo on your side, the others will soon follow suit. And where will that leave me? Alone. Forgotten. Deserted. Wiped off the face of the Earth. And you will simply be swimming in the lap of luxury--'

'Okay, I'm gonna have to stop you. Firstly, you will not be forgotten. Secondly, What is this 'lap of luxury' you mentioned? I haven't seen any of it. Thirdly, Bo would be on the Devil's side if he had chocolate. Fourthly, I don't want to make sense, so I won't. Lastly, did you say waltz?' and on that note, Mara took Scipio's hands and waltzed him around the rooftop, criticizing all the way; 'No, no, it's one, two, three, one, two, three,' 'Great, now you lead.' 'Ow! That was my foot!' 'Stop speeding up!' 'Stop slowing down!'

Eventually, Scipio was perfect--and exhausted. He sat down on the edge of the theater with his legs dangling over the side. Mara stood behind him, not tired at all. 'Not bad for a beginner. You should work on your endurance, but it wasn't bad.'

'Not bad?' Scipio groaned.

''That's what I said.' Mara stepped back as Scipio laid down on his back groaning. She sat down next to him and stared at him until he got up again. 'What?' he inquired.

'Do you really want to know why I'm here instead of back home?' Mara asked quietly.

'Uhh...I guess so.' Scipio said.

'Settle in, it's a long story.' Mara warned 'It started when I was twelve and my mom got hit by a car. She spent two days in the ICU before she died. I was with her every moment. My dad started drinking and I started this' she rolled up her sleeve to show crisscrossings of thin white lines. 'I got sent to a correctional facility, and Dad kept drinking. By the time I got out, I was fourteen. In my absence, Dad had become abusive and completely whacked out. I ended up avoiding him most of the time. I ran away from home a couple of times--or at least I tried to. Dad always called the cops to bring me back. Eventually, I got a part-time job and saved enough money to buy a one-way plane ticket. And that's the abridged story of my life.' Little did Scipio know just how abridged it was.

'And where did you learn to dance like that?' Scipio demanded.

'When I was about five, Mom would play old music and she'd teach me some of the steps she learned in high school. After a while, my interest grew, so she enrolled me in this brutal dance class. I enjoyed every second of my lesson, four hours a day, five days a week during the school year. Over the summer I went to a boarding school to continue my training. It was the best school that side of the Pacific, and I could outdance every single teacher. Ballroom, hip-hop, jazz, tap, you name it, I've mastered it. I was going to apply for a job there when I turned sixteen, but...umm...it didn't' t happen.' Mara paused. 'What's your story, Thief Lord? Been abandoned by society and rejected by all the girls, or just orphaned? Maybe it was a little more adventurous. Maybe you stole the Queen of Sheba's pearls and have been exiled. So, what turned you into the Thief Lord of Venice?' she inquired, 'What makes you the lord of thievery and master of the night?'

'I don't really want to talk about it.' Scipio was completely shut off and Mara knew she wouldn't be able to squeeze any information out of him.

'Okey dokey artichokey.' she said with a smile, 'but don't forget you owe me a bedtime story.'


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

After Mara was welcomed into the group of ragamuffins, she began seeing a lot more of Scipio. He would come the hideout every night, unless he had other business. Mosca told her that he had never seen the Thief Lord come to the hideout more than twice a week before she arrived. She heard stories of great robberies, superb hideouts, and wonderful adventures. Riccio told her of the time when he tried to follow Scipio to where he slept, but was caught and thoroughly scolded. After a time, Mara decided to follow Scipio home herself. She recalled one little sentence the Thief Lord had said. 'N-no, I'm alright, my father won't mind.'

So, the next time the Thief Lord paid them a visit, Mara was ready. She had a flashlight, a makeshift grappling hook, and a very good excuse should she get caught. After a while the Thief Lord left, and so did Mara. She followed him over roofs, through dark alleys, and past the Accademia Bridge. They ended at Fondamenta Bollani, number 223, Scipio scaling the ornate outer wall, and Mara about thirty paces behind. After Scipio entered the room Mara assumed was his bedroom, she rushed over to the mansion and started climbing. She was almost to the window when the lights turned on and she heard someone talking. She couldn't quite make out what they were saying, and she was starting to cramp up from clinging to the wall. She made her way up the scaffolding and perched herself on Scipio's windowsill. Then, with the talking stopped, and the lights turned out, Scipio left the room. Mara took this chance to clamber inside and stretch out her long legs on the floor. After a quick look around-it was a typical boy's room- Mara slithered under the bed and waited.

Scipio returned in about half an hour, judging by the square of moonlight on the floor. Mara waited until he had crawled into bed before she decided to show herself. She clambered out from under the bed, banging her head on the way. She kneeled on the hardwood floor (it was oak inlaid with cherry, in case you were wondering), wrapping her hands around her wound as the Thief Lord sat up, immediately alert.

'Mara? What are you doing here?' Scipio hissed with a glance at the door, 'You shouldn't be here.'

Mara looked up at him with tears in her eyes-her head HURT! - 'Neither should you, Thief Lord. What are YOU doing here?'

Scipio made a face. 'Are you going to tell the others?'

'Well, I might just have to, won't I?' Mara managed to be demeaning even though she was in pain, 'Aren't you going to make some outrageous excuse for living here?' she inquired.

'I can't think of any at the moment. How did you get in here?' Scipio noticed Mara's anguished face and added, 'Here, let me look at that for you.'

Mara let go of her head and stared at the teenage boy. 'I got in the same way you did, stupid. What did you think, I just walked in the front door?'

The Thief Lord looked stunned. He got out of bed and walked over to Mara. Upon inspection, her head was bleeding. 'Um, Mara?' he said cautiously. 'That's my name. Don't wear it out.' came the reply. 'Um...you're bleeding. A lot. ' Scipio had never dealt with blood before. Especially this amount. Mara rolled her eyes. 'Old news, dude. I haven't been clutching my head for nothing. Just leave it alone and it'll be fine. I'll try not to stain your Persian carpet.' Mara said, her voice dripping with contempt.

'Sorry,' Scipio said sarcastically, 'I'll let you bleed to death next time.'

'Suit yourself. I'm leaving.' Mara was understandably angry--you whack your head and be in a good mood!

Scipio stood, aghast. 'No you are not! I won't allow it! You will stay here.'

'Hey stupid! What are you going to tell your father? That I fell from the sky? I'm an angel who lost her wings and smacked her head? I don't think so.' Mara tried to keep her temper, but it wasn't easy. 'Look, Thief Lord, I need medical attention, and your father isn't the type to help a beggar. Besides, what would you tell the gang? I have to leave, and that's all there is to it.'

'Then at least let me get you some bandages, and I'll patch you up so you can go on your merry way.' Scipio looked concerned. Mara shouldn't leave in her condition, but she was right. He couldn't do anything for her, apart from wrapping her wound. 'I'll sneak you downstairs so you don't have to scale the wall again.' Mara nodded her agreement.

Scipio explained the plan to Mara--the bleeding had begun to wane now--and after much eye rolling on Mara's part, executed it beautifully.

Scipio stumbled down the stairs with a pained expression on his face. As he neared the bottom of the steps, he fainted dead away, conveniently right in front of the maid. He heard her rush to find his father and he signaled Mara to get ready. Dr Massimo was rather annoyed with his son when he found him moaning on the floor, but he helped him into the parlor and sent the maid to phone the doctor. Amidst all the chaos, Mara slipped out the front door into the night.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Mara checked into the emergency room shortly after midnight. The nurses collected her information, asked where her parents were, and wrapped her head. Mara showed a fake ID describing her as Lila Wintergreen, and stating that she was over eighteen. She claimed to be an artistic student from Virginia, taking a semester to study Venice. Mara explained that she had slipped on the wet walkway a few blocks away and smacked her head. The nurses seemed to buy her story. Mara heard a paging for an on-call doctor to visit Fondamenta Bollani, number 223, and she realized what a good actor Scipio must be.

When Mara got back to the hideout, the gang was very worried about her. Apparently Riccio had taken Mosca out looking for her, only to come back empty-handed. She told them she had slipped on some ice and had to go to the hospital. As Hornet studied Mara's head, Bo plopped himself in her lap and fell asleep. Hornet finished her inspection and carried Bo to his mattress. Riccio and Prosper and Mosca sat there, watching her. At last, Mara announced that she was tired and was going to bed.

They didn't see Scipio for nearly a week after Mara's accident. By the time he showed up, the ragamuffin band had planned out almost the entire job of stealing the wing.

'How are we going to get that thing over the garden wall?' Hornet wanted to know.

'Oh, that's easy,' said Riccio, 'Just throw it over.'

'What if it breaks?' Prosper countered, 'Then what will you do?'

Mara piped up, 'Duct tape fixes everything.'

Riccio leaned toward Mosca and whispered 'What's duck tape?'

'I've no idea.' Mosca answered.

'Where's Bo?' Prosper asked anxiously.

'I'm up here!' shouted Bo, clinging to the theater curtain, about halfway up. Suddenly, the tattered fabric ripped, and sent Bo plummeting. Prosper jumped up and

ran to center stage, but he was too late. Bo had already fallen on something...or rather someONE. The gang could hear a muffled cry of 'What the heck is going on here?!' Mosca and Riccio dragged the curtain off the struggling figure, and were shocked to find Scipio underneath.

'Scip! Thank you for catching me.' Bo said, happy as ever.

'Any time...although next time I'd rather you warned me before you decided to fall from the sky.' Scipio said breathlessly. Mara let out a breath she hadn't known she had been holding. He was alright! Bo could be so scary sometimes. He was such a little monkey! Hornet checked Bo, then Scipio for signs of injury, and then, satisfied that it was nothing a Band-Aid couldn't handle, tugged Scipio's ponytail. She ignored the glare he shot her, and remarked, 'Well, that was lucky.'

'No kidding! Good thing Scip was there to catch me, huh Prop?' Bo was astounded, 'How'd you know where to stand, Scip?' he asked.

'I didn't.' Scipio admitted, 'I didn't even know you were up there. Don't you know better than to climb up things like that?'

Bo was immediately remorseful. 'Sorry Scip, I won't climb up it again.'

Riccio laughed. 'I bet you won't. There's no curtain left!'

Everybody looked up to see what Riccio meant. The entire curtain had fallen when Bo had accidentally tackled Scipio, and it surrounded the children in a giant river of fabric.

'And the curtain falls for the last time,' Mosca said poetically.

'Duct tape fixes everything! Let's stick that baby back up there!' Mara exclaimed.

Riccio leaned in to whisper to Scipio, 'What's duck tape?'

'No idea.' Scipio replied.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Scipio left the children in a good mood that evening. They had worked out the last few details of the robbery, and Scipio was pleased with the results of the gang's questions. Riccio would pick the lock on the garden gate while the rest of the children went to find the wing, and they'd bring it out that way. When he had gone, and Hornet had sent Bo off to bed, Mara decided to go up to the roof again. She leisurely climbed the stairs, enjoying the scenery. Riccio and Bo had drawn on the walls with a bit of pencil Hornet had happened to find. There was a story with every picture. The monster with a braid was from one day when Hornet made Bo angry, and the horse and dragon was when Bo the Knight, upon his royal steed Riccio, defeated the great dragon, actually the biggest pastry they had ever seen. _Bo is so creative, they really should get him into art classes_, Mara thought, _Oh, wait, that won't work. Never mind, then. But I could show him some new techniques. _As she neared the top of the steps, Mara heard someone talking. She pressed her ear to the door to the roof, and she could begin to make out what was being said. Eventually the voice faded away, and as she turned to leave-she no longer felt like an outdoor meditation-she ran directly into Mosca. 'What was that?' he asked. 'I don't know,' Mara claimed, 'Probably just the wind.' They both knew she was lying. Mara could feel the guilt spreading across her face like pollution through a lake. Mosca raised an eyebrow. 'I think we should wake the others,' he said. Mara nodded.

Everybody was awake except Bo. Mara was surrounded. She could feel the tension in the air, waiting to be cut. Prosper stood behind Hornet, his hand on her shoulder. Riccio was chewing on his ratty old security blanket. Mosca took charge.

'Mara and I heard someone on the roof. It sounded like Scipio,' he started nervously, 'I couldn't tell what he was saying, but Mara had her ear against the door.' Mara paled. She could lie again, better this time, but look at the way Riccio stared at her! She could never lie under that kind of pressure! She took a deep breath and began.

'Scipio was talking to himself,' _Talking to oneself is a sure sign of insanity, _she remembered her mentor telling her, 'He was saying something about how he should tell us about something. He sounded very distressed.' She paused. She could still spin this in her favor, but not with Riccio right there! Wouldn't that boy look away? She took another deep breath. 'He told himself that he should get home, because is father was mad enough already. And then he left.'

'You're lying!' Riccio jumped up. 'Scipio doesn't have a dad! He's an orphan like the rest of us!'

'Why would she lie, Riccio?' Prosper said softly.

'She doesn't belong here! She just wants to ruin everything!' Riccio's eyes were frantic as he went on, 'She was planning this all along! She's jealous of us, and she wants to wreck it all!'

Hornet interrupted. 'Riccio, stop it! You're being stupid! She probably just misheard or something.' Hornet looked at Mara with hope in her eyes. Mara glanced away quickly. Mosca piped up again. 'Let's not freak out until we know for sure. Scipio will tell us whatever he needs to, and the rest of it isn't our business. Let's just go to bed.' Everybody nodded in agreement.

'What's everybody arguing about?' Bo had gotten up when he heard the fight. 'What about Scip?'

Hornet thought quickly. 'Just that he's thinking about letting Riccio join the circus. I think it's ridiculous.' The rest of the gang caught on and voiced their opinions. 'I think it's a great idea!' said Mosca; Prosper argued that Riccio was too young to join the circus. Mara stated that if Riccio wanted to join the circus, he should join the circus. The only quiet one was Riccio himself.

'Oh,' said Bo, clambering into Prosper's lap, 'I want to join the circus, too!' This was met with many of the same arguments. 'You're definitely too young!' Prosper said animatedly, while Mosca still claimed it was an excellent idea. 'Besides, you wouldn't want to go by yourself,' Hornet rushed on, 'we'd just decided that Riccio wasn't going to be an acrobat.'

'Oh,' Bo said again, 'I guess not.'

'Come on, little monkey,' Prosper said, scooping his brother up, 'it's time for bed.'

'Okay, Prop. Good night, everybody!'

'Good night, Bo.' everybody chorused, 'Sleep tight,' added Mara.

Mara went back up to the roof after the exhausting debate. She wanted to look at the stars. It was something she always did back home. _Home_, thought Mara, _will I ever go back home?_ Home to her friends, her pet cat-was Fuzzball even still alive? Then Mara decided to do something very stupid. She took some money out of the gang's emergency fund, found the nearest pay phone, and called home. Well, not home exactly. When the operator connected Mara to the United States, and she heard the groggy voice on the other line, she was already regretting it, but she had to talk to him, just to hear his voice. 'Jake? It's Mara.'

'Mara? What the heck do you think you're doing? It's two in the flippin' morning!'

'Sorry,' Mara bit her lip. Why hadn't she thought about the time differences? While it was just breaking dawn in Italy, it was much earlier in America. 'I miss you.'

'I miss you, too. When are you coming home?'

She could almost hear Jake rolling out of bed and climbing out his window onto the roof so he wouldn't wake his parents. The small touch of nostalgia brought a lump to Mara's throat. She swallowed hard. 'I don't know when I can, Jake. It'll probably be a while. Are they still looking for me?'

'Nah. I haven't heard anything about you in weeks. I think your dad's finally given up. Do you want me to book a flight for you?'

Mara smiled, then frowned. Calling Jake was a mistake. 'Um...no...I think I'd better play it cool for another month or two...I'll call you when I'm coming home, okay? I have to go. And Jake? I...really, really miss you.'

'I miss you, too, sweetie. Come home soon. Bye.'

'Bye,' Mara said with a hint of sorrow in her voice, 'I will.' she whispered into the dead phone.


End file.
